This free Bible lesson is part 6 of 10 in our Lord’s Prayer study. Click here to browse all the lessons and related ideas. Don’t miss our printable Lord’s Prayer coloring book, use it as an additional activity while teaching this unit.
Main idea: As we wait for Jesus Christ to return, we follow God’s will and tell others the Good News of Jesus.
Teacher preparation:
- Read Scripture references, Psalm 143:10, Micah 6:8, Romans 12:2 and 1 Timothy 2:1-6
- Gather: Bible, band aids (the cheap, colorful ones would be best), construction paper or cardstock, markers or crayons, pictures of different road signs (like stop, no left turn, crosswalk, etc), dry erase markers or chart paper and markers.
- Write “May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven,” (Matthew 6:10b, NLT) on a regular sheet of paper. Make sure it takes up the whole page, so it can easily be read. Fold it up and place it in an envelope.
- Take time to meditate on this week’s Scripture and think about your own life. As we grow and mature in our walk with Christ, many Christians find themselves asking, “What is God’s will for my life?” We want to know what we should be doing. The Bible makes it clear. In essence, we are to love. One simple way we show God’s love to others is to love them and to tell them about Jesus.
Scripture references:
- Matthew 7:21
- Romans 14:17-19
- Mark 12:30-31
- 1 Timothy 2:3-4
- Matthew 28:18-20
Game:
Band Aid Relay. Divide the class into two or three teams, depending on the size of your class. Line the teams up along one side of the room. At the other side of the room, lay out band aids. (You may want to unwrap them for younger kids.) The object of the game is to be the first team with band aids on every team member. To play, the first child from each team will run across the room, grab a band aid, and adhere it to the next person in line. Place the band aids on the back of hands only, to make them visible and easy to remove later. After the first runner places a band aid on the hand of the second runner, the second runner then runs and grabs a band aid and places it on the hand of the third team mate. Play continues until the first team mate who ran has a band aid too. The first team to have a band aid on the hand of every team mate wins.
Message:
Open in prayer, then say,
Over the past few weeks, we have been learning about prayer, specifically the Lord’s Prayer. As we learn more and more about this special prayer that Jesus taught his disciples, we have been memorizing it in small parts. So far, we have memorized “Our father in heaven, may your name be kept holy. May your kingdom come soon.” Last week we learned that since we have Jesus living in our hearts, we are super excited to get to spend all of forever in heaven with him! So we want his kingdom to come soon.
The next part of the Lord’s prayer we are studying is in this envelope. This is a special letter from God. (Have a student open and read the letter, or do so yourself.) It says, “May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” (At the top of the board, write three column headings: “God’s kingdom,” “God’s will,” and “how to.”) God’s kingdom and God’s will are closely related. Matthew 7:21 says, “Not everyone who calls out to me, ‘Lord! Lord!’ will enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Only those who actually do the will of my Father in heaven will enter.” Here, Jesus makes it clear that it’s one thing to SAY we are a Christian, and it is quite another thing to BE a Christian. Christians are supposed to do what God wants them to do. We do nice things for the people we love, and we show God we love him by doing his will. Let’s have a sword drill to see what the Bible has to say about the kingdom of God and doing God’s will. Remove all bookmarks from your Bible and hold your Bible above your head. When I say go, turn to Romans 14:17-19. Go! Have a student read the verses: “For the Kingdom of God is not a matter of what we eat or drink, but of living a life of goodness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. If you serve Christ with this attitude, you will please God, and others will approve of you, too. So then, let us aim for harmony in the church and try to build each other up.” So following God’s will and living for the kingdom of heaven is not about following a bunch of silly rules, but about living a life that shows God you love him, and loving others with a good attitude. (Under the headings “God’s kingdom” and “God’s will,” write, “love God, love others.”) That’s really what doing God’s will is all about. One time, someone asked Jesus what the most important commandment is, and Jesus answered, “And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength. The second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ No other commandment is greater than these.” (Mark 12:30-31). This sums up what we are supposed to do. We are supposed to love God first, and love others second. One way we show God how much we love him is by showing others we love them. Our special message today, and the part of the prayer we will have memorized for next week is, “May your will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.” In heaven, God’s will is always done. There is no temptation, there is no sin in heaven. God’s will happens. This part of the prayer petitions, or asks God, that his will would be done here on earth, just like his will is done on heaven. God’s will is that everyone on earth would know Jesus and be forgiven of their sins. 1 Timothy 2:3-4 says, “This is good and pleases God our Savior, who wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth.” This is why Jesus gave us the Great Commission. The Great Commission is a job Jesus gave to all Christians after he was resurrected from the dead. Right before he ascended into heaven, Jesus said, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20). Think for a moment about your favorite toy. Mine growing up was a Barbie car. It was a turquoise Corvette. (Share your own favorite toy from childhood.) I loved that toy and loved to share it with my friends when they came over to play, because it was the coolest toy I had. As a Christian, the coolest and the best thing we have is the love of Jesus Christ, and the grace he gives us. Just like we want to share our favorite toys, we want to share Jesus. That is exactly what the Great Commission tells us to do. (Under the column heading “how,” write “tell others about Jesus.”) We want God’s will to be done on earth, just like it is in heaven, so we do God’s will by loving him first and loving others. We show other people love by telling them how much God loves them.
Before we move on to our craft, let’s pray for people who need to know Jesus. Let’s pray that we would be faithful to do God’s will and that his will would be done on earth as it is in heaven.
End in prayer.
Craft: Road signs to Heaven. Road signs communicate to us how to get somewhere, and what road conditions may exist. Before starting the craft, show the kids pictures of different road signs, like stop, no u-turn, library this way, speed limit, etc. Tell the class that road signs show us the way to go when driving, and the Bible shows us the way to go in life. We want to point people to Christ, so they can follow his way of living. To help point people in the right direction, make “road signs for life.” Use paper and coloring tools to create simple pictures that illustrate the Gospel. For example, write SIN in black and put a red circle with a slash through it around it. Draw a cross with someone kneeling before it and write “Free parking, anytime.” On a green background, write, in white, “Kingdom of God, population, YOU!” Draw a river or a chasm with a cross going across it and write “crosswalk.” Draw a stop sign and write “sinning” under the word “STOP.” These are just some examples. Let the kids get creative with their own ideas. You may be surprised by their creativity and spiritual understanding!